Search

Monday, 1 December 2014

Complexities of obtaining
a Saudi visa are known to frequent travelers. However, if you are planning to
visit the Kingdom for the first time, it is better to do some prior research on
the visa process. The process is not as easy as it is for other countries and
you may experience delays and frustration because of lack of homework. It
should be engraved in your mind if you are applying for visa of Saudi Arabia
that Saudi Arabia does not, and I repeat does not, allow casual tourist visa
visits. You need to have a business or a family to get invitations letters
issued from the Saudi government or no visa will be granted (expect for Haj or
Umrah visa). The host may be the business which you will be working for or your
family. If you intend to visit KSA for a business trip, your host will be a
registered company which has been allocated a fixed number, type and validity
period of visas by the government. The host company should send you a collection
of official documents, majority of which will be in Arabic. Here is the first
problem encountered by anyone who cannot read or understand written Arabic
applying for a KSA visa!

The most important
document in this collection is the invitation
letter which host company or host family will have to procure through the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and send to you (add two weeks of time frame in
your travelling plans since the government will approve the invitation letter
two weeks after the host company requests for it). Without this critical piece
of paper you simply cannot visit KSA. It will contain all the basic information
about the type, duration of stay in KSA and validity of the visa you will be
issued. The invitation letter should be sent to your consulate from Saudi via
electronic channel. During visa processing the hard copies will be cross
checked with the electronic versions the consulate has. Moreover, the enjaz
will also be listed in this invitation letter (without reconciliation of the
invitation letter and enjaz you will not be granted the visa) In addition to
the drawback of the invitation letter being in Arabic, it is also sent in
different formats.

The importance of this
letter, complexity of Arabic language and confusing format makes it more
advantageous for you to hire a visa expert who has experience of processing
Saudi visas. It is better, in my opinion, to pay a few dollars extra rather
than go through painful delays, mounting frustrations due to rejections and
tedious paperwork.

Your task does not end
with the correct filling of the invitation letter. By no means make the mistake
of considering this invitation letter as your visa! You will still need to send
your passport and application to the consulate.
How smooth or tiring was your visa processing experience? Do you think
it is best to leave the task of completing this long and confusing process to
the expert agencies or are you a do-it-yourselfer?